Lebanon

Between pouring drinks and clearing the deck, the bartender at the American Legion post in Lebanon this week has an additional task in mind: political organizing. Behind the bar is an old-fashioned paper petition -- they're trying to get enough signatures to put the electronic gambling game Keno on the city ballot in March.

It’s been a tough go. The deadline for the petition is Wednesday, and on Monday afternoon, even the club manager said he’s not confident they’ll get the 420 names they need.

The city of Lebanon has joined the growing list of New Hampshire communities signing on to the goals of the Paris Climate Accord.

The Lebanon City Council vote was unanimous Wednesday night. Councilors acknowledge that the move doesn't mean any practical changes for the city -- they already have policies on the books to significantly reduce their greenhouse gas footprint.

The Lebanon City Council voted Wednesday to amend the city's master plan, removing references to natural gas as a favored energy source. The move is largely symbolic, but it reflects growing concern around the environmental impact of natural gas.

Residents in the Upper Valley are organizing to fight a proposal by Liberty Utilities for a new natural gas facility and pipeline running through Lebanon and Hanover. The state Public Utilities Commission is slated to hear that proposal in September.

About 50 people showed up for a public forum with the Lebanon Police Chief Richard Mello in West Lebanon Tuesday night.

Since the November election, residents have been approaching the mayor and city councilors with questions around immigration enforcement by local law enforcement, according to Councilor Karen Liot Hill. “A lot of people seem to be really concerned about what might happen -- not necessarily what was happening, but what might happen in the future,” she said.

Two years ago, President Obama announced plans for rating colleges and universities, so students would know whether they were getting a good value. Now, the administration has released its College Scorecard, and students and families are deciding how best to use it.

The first library in the country to become part of the anonymous web browsing service Tor has disconnected from that network, at least for now.

Officials at the Kilton Public Library in Lebanon were contacted by local law enforcement with concerns about Tor’s ability to conceal criminal activity. Library officials chose to disconnect from Tor pending further review.

The Lebanon Municipal Airport has missed out on getting $750,000 for improvements, after the city failed to have a plan in place.

The Valley News reports the airport receives $1 million each year from the federal Essential Air Service Program when at least 10,000 people depart from it. The $750,000 is what's left of Lebanon's 2012 allocation.

If the airport doesn't spend that money within three years, it's dispersed to other airports in the region.

A rash of kidnappings in Lebanon over the weekend, coupled with deadly cross-border attacks by the Syrian army, are all worrying signs that Syria's troubles are continuing to spill over into its smaller and weaker neighbor.

In the most recent incidents, a Sunni sheik known to support the Syrian uprising was abducted. In retaliation, several Alawites aligned with the Syrian government were taken. Days before that, the Syrian army shot several people on Lebanese territory.